‘Ogni pittore dipinge sé’ – On Leonardo da Vinci’s Saint John the Baptist

Leonardo da Vinci’s painting Saint John the Baptist (c. 1510 – Fig. 3.1) belongs to his late works and is one of his most enigmatic works. Over the years, the painting has evoked mixed feelings about its meaning. For instance, it has been called ‘the effusion of an aging homosexual’,1 and by some contemporary authors the painting has been considered as blasphemous.2 These responses are not surprising, given the many ambiguous and confusing elements of the image.